Brighter outlook for company profits

THE number of companies issuing profit warnings has reached its lowest level in five years.

The warnings have fallen for the second consecutive quarter, with just 38 issued in the past three months and 39 in the second quarter of the year. That compares with 89 in last year's third quarter.

Andrew Wollaston, a partner at accountancy group Ernst & Young, which carried out the research, says: 'In the past couple of years, there has been a lot to deal with, from the foot and mouth epidemic to the war in Iraq, but we've had six months of greater global and economic stability.'